In the age of automation, we are undergoing a skills shift. By 2022, 54% of frontline workers will need significant reskilling. Carol Leaman, CEO of Axonify joined us on RBC Disruptors to discuss how they are revolutionizing the way companies retrain their frontline workers

The Skills Shift

On New Year’s Eve, BlueDot—a Toronto technology company aiming to fight epidemics using AI—saw something concerning. By the next day, BlueDot had alerted its clients of the possible outbreak of a novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China—days before the World Health Organization.

On RBC Disruptors, meet Dr. Kamran Khan, a Canadian physician and entrepreneur using AI and Big Data to create an early-warning system for infectious diseases. Khan and John Stackhouse discuss:
-	How BlueDot’s early warning system detected the 2020 coronavirus ahead of everyone else
-	Why Canada is a challenging environment for healthcare innovation
-	How societies struggle in 2020 to contain infectious diseases despite a wave of new technologies

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How a Canadian Company Used AI to Detect the Coronavirus

Today on RBC Disruptors, John Stackhouse sits down with two Torontonians who are working to ensure black entrepreneurs have access to more opportunities in the city’s thriving tech sector. They discuss the challenges unique to Canadian black entrepreneurs, the barriers they face getting their ideas off the ground, and why companies that invest in diversity and inclusion tend to be more successful.

Isaac Olowolafe Jr., who heads a Toronto-based asset management firm, is the founder of Dream Maker Ventures – a venture capital fund that invests in diverse founders from marginalized communities. He’s joined by Abdullah Snobar, the Executive Director of the DMZ – a tech incubator at Ryerson University. Dream Maker Ventures and the DMZ raised $1M to launch the Black Innovation Fellowship – a program addressing the lack of diversity in the startup ecosystem.

In light of Black History Month, Isaac and Abdullah called for Canadians to consider the importance of access and championing of black innovators. Increased opportunity and visibility will be key in advancing black entrepreneurship in the digital economy.

Why Are There so Few Black Entrepreneurs in the Digital Economy?

The data economy in Canada is worth more than $200 billion. Over the past two years, more data has been created than ever before. And, while Canadian companies invest $40 billion a year in data, many believe that Canada is falling behind its peers when it comes to collecting and leveraging data. So what’s holding us back?

On RBC Disruptors, meet former Google exec Sam Sebastian, CEO of Pelmorex, the Canadian data giant behind The Weather Network that connects with 60M users globally each month. Sebastian and John Stackhouse discuss: 
    - How Pelmorex is using AI and machine learning along with location, weather and behavior data to create bespoke insights for their clients
    - The tension between protecting user privacy and new product innovation
    - How companies can successfully collect and use data without eroding public trust

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Is Data Bigger than Oil?

RBC Disruptors is an ongoing podcast series hosted by SVP John Stackhouse about reimagining Canada's economy in a time of unprecedented change. It features thought-provoking conversations with Canadian business and innovation leaders about planting the seeds of a new economy.

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Season Two Trailer

RBC Disruptors is an ongoing speaker series at RBC, moderated by SVP John Stackhouse,  designed to bring leading thinkers into the enterprise to talk about major shifts in the world around us. Featuring thought-provoking sessions on digital technology, changing workplaces and big shifts in consumer behaviour, we aim to stimulate new conversations and ideas.

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